Pipe cutter



J. K. CLARK ET AL PIPE CUTTER Filed Sept. 14, 1931 May 15,. 1934.

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#4151; I. @405 @141 uocmqd Patented May 15, 1934 UNITED STATES 1,959,284 PIPE CUTTER Jack K. Clark, Louis M. Pearce, and Walter L. Church, Houston, Tex., assignors to C-M-P Fishing Tool Corporation, Houston, Tex., a corporation of Texas Application September 14, 1931, Serial No. 562,768

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a pipe cutter.

An object of the invention is to provide an inside cutter for cutting casing, pipe and the like in a well bore.

Another object is to provide a cutter of the character described embodying outwardly movable cutter blades and relatively movable parts for actuating the blades outwardly.

Another object is to provide a cutter having means for anchoring the same in the pipe to be cut and means for maintaining said anchoring means in inactive position while the tool is being lowered into the pipe to be cut.

Another object is to provide, in a pipe cutter, novel means for tripping the anchoring device to permit the tool to be anchored thereby at a selected point in the pipe.

With the above and other objects in view this invention has particular relation to certain novel features of construction, operation and arrangement of parts an exafnple of which is given in this specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 shows a side elevation of the tool, partly in section.

Figure 2 shows a cross sectional view taken on the line 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 shows a cross sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1, and

Figure 4 shows a cross sectional View, partly in section, of a modified form of the tool.

Referring now moreparticularly to the drawing, wherein like numerals of reference designate similar parts in each of the figures the numeral 1 designates a tubular cutter body which may be attached to the lower end of the operating string 2 and which is reduced and extended forming the tubular mandrel 3. Attached to the lower end of the mandrel there is a suitable guide 4. The lowerend of the body has the external blade slots 5 wherein are pivoted the swinging blades 6. The upper ends of the blades are extended above their pivots and are seated against the outwardly working springs '7 in the body which normally hold the blades retracted. The lower ends of the blades have the outwardly directed points, or bits 8. Any suitable type of blades'or cutters may be employed.

On the mandrel beneath the cutter body there is a'wedge ring 9 and secured within this ring are the upwardly extended, wedge-shaped bladeactuators 10 having the external, downwardly flared faces 11 and the blades have the correspondingly beveled inside faces 12 which may ride on the faces 11 to expand the blades. The ring 9 is suitably splined on said mandrel.

0n the mandrel beneath the wedge ring 9 there is a jaw expander 13 having the flared face 14. The adjacent ends of the ring 9 and expander 13 have the external annular grooves 15, 16, re-

spectively and there is. a coupling ring 1'! having the inside ribs 18, 19 which run in said grooves whereby the wedge ring may turnrelative to the expander 13. Anti-friction bearings 20 may be interposed between said wedge ring and expander if desired.

As shown inFigure 1 the expander 13 has the tubular extension 21 which fits closely over the mandrel 3 and whose lower end has a ring nut 22 thereon. Around the extension 21 there is a sleeve 23 in which are mounted the radial gripping members 24 which are seated on the yieldable members 25, such as coil springs. This sleeve has an inside annular shoulder 26 underneath which the ringnut 22.engages and the adjacent parts of the guide 4 and sleeve 23 are connected by the coarse threads, as 27. The ring nut 22 is thus located between the shoulder 26 above and the upper end of the guide 4 beneath to the end that there can be no relative longitudinal movement of the mandrel 3, the expander 13 and the sleeve 23 while the parts are thus assembled.

On the face 14 are the slip jaws 28 whose lower ends have the transverse external grooves 29 and the upper end of the sleeve has the inside annular rib 30 which fits into the grooves 29 whereby the slip jaws are attached to said sleeve.

In operation the cutting tool, as shown in Figure 1, is lowered into'the pipe, or casing, to be cut to the point selected for the cut. The gripping members 24 are in frictional engagement with the inside of said pipe, or casing, and when the tool is located at the selected place the operating string 2 and mandrel 3 may be appropriately turned while the gripping members 24 hold the sleeve stationary and the guide 4 will be unscrewed from said sleeve and the mandrel 3 and expander 13 may then ,move downwardly, relative to the slip jaws 28 and said jaws will be expanded into engagement with the pipe, or casing, to be cut and the tool will be thereby anchored in place and the blades 6 will be actuated outwardly by the actuators 10 into engagement with the inside of the pipe, or casing, to be cut. The operating string may now be rotated and gradually lowered and the blade bits 8 will .be gradually forced outwardly until the pipe, or casing, is severed. The string 2 may then be elevated and the body 1 and blades 6 will be carried upwardly with it causing said blades to be released by the actuators 10 and the blade bits will be retracted by the springs '7 and released from the cut off section of pipe, or casing, and the upper end of the guide 4 will engage the lower end of the extension 21, moving said extension and the expander 13 upwardly and releasing the slip jaws 28. The tool may now be withdrawn and in coming'out of the well the guide 4 may, or may not, be screwed back onto the sleeve 23, as desired.

As above stated, while going into the well the expander 13 is held against longitudinal movement relative to the mandrel 3 and the sleeve 23 so that there will be no liability of the jaws 28 and blade bits 8 being prematurely engaged with the pipe, or casing, to be cut.

In the form shown in Figure 4 the slip jaws and expander therefor have been dispensed with. In this form the sleeve 23' is thicker than the sleeve 23 and is fitted closely around the mandrel 3 and its upper end has the external annular groove 16', to receive the rib 19 of the coupling ring 17 whereby said sleeve 23 is provided with a swiveling connection with the wedge ring 9. In this type of cutter the spring 25 should have sufficient strength to hold the gripping members 24 in such secure gripping relation with the pipe, or casing, to be cut that when the tool is located at the selected place for making the out said tool will be held against longitudinal movement while the cut is being completed. In other respects than those indicated the tool shown in Figure 4 is similar in construction and operation to the form shown in the other figures.

The drawing and description disclose what is now considered to be preferred forms of the in vention by way of illustration only while the broad principle of the invention will be defined by the appended claims.

What we claim is:

1. A pipe cutter adapted to cut by rotation in a pipe in a well comprising a tubular cutter body having vertical cutter slots, a tubular mandrel formed integrally with and depending from said body, pivotally mounted cutters in said slots andwhose lower ends are provided with outwardly directed bits and inside beveled faces, a wedge ring on the mandrel beneath said cutters, wedge shaped cutte: actuators secured to said ring,

means preventing the rotation of said ring relative to the mandrel, a tubular jaw expander on the mandrel having an upwardly flared face, means for rotatably connecting said expander with said wedge ring, a tubular extension depending from said expander and fitted over said mandrel, an external abutment on said extension, a sleeve around said extension, yieldably mounted gripping members on said sleeve, said sleeve having an inside shoulder above said abutment, a guide fitted onto the lower end of the mandrel whose upper end is arranged beneath the lower end of said extension and onto the upper end of which the lower end of said sleeve is threaded and slip jaws connected to the upper end of the sleeve and arranged to be expanded by said expander.

2. A pipe cutter adapted to out by rotation in a well and comprising a tubular cutter body whose lower end is reduced and extended forming a tu-. bular mandrel, said body having vertical side slots above the mandrel, cutters in said slots whose upper ends are pivoted and whose lower ends are formed with outwardly directed bits, springs acting against the upper ends of said cutters above said pivots, a guide attached to the lower end of said mandrel, a wedge ring splined on the mandrel beneath the cutter body, cutter actuators on said ring having downwardly flared faces, said cutters having beveled inside faces adapted to ride on the faces of said actuators to expand the cutters, a jaw expander having a downwardly tapering face and located on the mandrel beneath the wedge ring, means for connecting said expander and wedge ring to permit their relative rotation, a tubular extension on the expander which fits closely over the mandrel, a ring nut on the lower end of said extension, a sleeve around said extension whose lower end has a threaded connection with the guide, radial gripping members working through said sleeve, yieldable members normally holding said gripping members outwardly, said sleeve having an inside annular shoulder, said ring nut being located between said shoulder and the upper end of said guide, slip jaws around said expander and connected to the upper end of said sleeve.

3. A pipe cutter adapted to cut by rotation in a well and comprising a tubular cutter body whose lower end is reduced and extended forming a tubular mandrel, said body having vertical side slots above the mandrel, cutters whose upper ends are pivoted in said slots and whose lower ends are formed with outwardly directed bits, springs acting against the cutters and normally holding the cutters retracted into said slots, a guide attached to the lower end of the mandrel, a wedge ring splined'on the mandrel beneath the cutter body, cutter actuators on said ring having downwardly flared faces, said cutters having beveled inside faces adapted to ride on the faces of said actuators to expand the cutters, a sleeve around the mandrel whose lower end has a threaded connection with said guide, radially movable gripping members working through said sleeve, means for slip jaws on the sleeve, said guide being releasable from the sleeve to permit the downward movement of the expander to expand the jaws.

4. A pipe cutter adapted to cut by rotation in a pipe in the well and comprising a tubular cutter body having a vertical slot, a tubular mandrel depending from the body, a cutter pivotally mounted in said, slot and whose lower end has an outwardly directed bit and an inside beveled face, a wedge ring on the mandrel beneath the cutter, a wedge shaped cutter actuator on the ring, means preventing the rotation of the ring relative to the mandrel, a tubular jaw expander on the mandrel having an upwardly flared face, means for rotatably connecting said expander with the wedge ring, a tubular extension depending from the expander and fitted over the mandrel, an external abutment on said extension, a sleeve around said extension, yleldably mounted gripping members on the sleeve, said sleeve having an inside shoulder above said abutment, a guideon the lower end of the mandrel whose upper end is arranged beneath the lower end of the extension and onto the upper end of which the sleeve is threaded and expansible wall engaging means connected to the upper end'of the sleeve and arranged to be expanded by said expander.

JACK K. CLARK. LOUIS M. PEARCE. 1 WALTER L. CHURCH. 

